For decades a popular toy for outdoor use has been an item comprised of a rotor with an attachable shaft and a hand-held pull-cord launcher. The typical rotor is made of integrally molded plastic material which forms a system of pitched blades (airfoils) which converge horizontally to an axis to which the top of the rotor's shaft can be attached vertically from the bottom side of the rotor. The converging blades are equal and evenly distributed about the axis. An annular band extending continuously from the extreme outer end of one blade to that of the next forms the perimeter of the rotor and is concentrically positioned about the axis.
The typical hand-held pull-cord launcher is an assembly comprised of molded plastic components, a cord, a rubber band, and fasteners. The molded plastic components include two side walls which adjoin to form the side wall and bottom end of a hollow handle with an interconnecting circular compartment atop, referred to as the spool compartment. The spool compartment has an opening through the center of its top, the center of its bottom, and the center of its side wall. The compartment is designed to house a molded plastic spool which is integrally formed with a hook extending from the center of one of its flat circular ends and with a connector extending from the other, which is designed to connect the rotor's shaft to the launcher. The spool sits vertically, on end, inside the compartment with the hook extending through the opening in the bottom of the compartment and into the top portion of the hollow handle. The connector extends through the opening in the top of the spool compartment. One end of the cord attaches to the center of the side of the spool. The remainder of the cord winds clockwise around the spool and the opposite end of the cord exits the compartment through the opening in its side wall and attaches to a pull. The rubber band is attached to the hook, wound counterclockwise, stretched and connected to a rod which protrudes inward from the inner surface of the hollow handle, near its bottom end. The tension created in the rubber band keeps the cord wound onto the spool when the launcher is not in use. The side walls forming the side wall of the launcher are held together by screws or keeper rings.
The rotor is launched by grasping the handle with one hand, pointing the connector skyward, and, using the other hand, connecting the shaft attached to the rotor to the connector, grasping the pull, and rapidly pulling the cord, unwinding it from the spool. The unwinding action of the cord rotates the rubber band, the integrally formed hook/spool/connector composite component, and the rotor and its shaft counterclockwise, in unison, and creates lift beneath the horizontal rotating blades of the rotor. When the cord ceases to unwind, the rotating parts of the launcher cease to rotate. Simultaneously, momentum or inertia continues to rotate the rotor and its shaft and this force, combined with the lift created beneath the blades, causes the shaft to be released from the connector and sends the rotor and its shaft flying into the air, rotating about an axis of rotation while traveling generally perpendicular to that axis at the same time. When the cord is released, the increased tension in the wound rubber band is released and the unwinding action of the rubber band rotates the hook/spool/connector composite component clockwise and rewinds the cord onto the spool.
The typical aerodynamic rotor with pull-cord launcher toy has proven to be a suitable item for outdoor use during the hours of daylight. However, it is unsuited for outdoor use during non-daylight hours, in the absence of artificial outdoor lighting. The new invention makes the toy suitable for outdoor use during the hours of darkness, without artificial outdoor lighting.
The design of the typical aerodynamic rotor with pull-cord launcher toy is such that connecting the rotor's shaft to the launcher's connector is accomplished easily only when the interconnecting areas of the two approach each other at a precise angle, prior to making contact with each other. Such a connection is not easily accomplished in the dark or in insufficient light. The present invention provides a shaft and a connector which can easily be connected by feel, making the connection easily accomplished in the dark.